Derrick Lewis responds to Francis Ngannou's challenge: 'It's about time'

Derrick Lewis may be vacationing in Jamaica, but he’s still got his ear to the ground in the MMA world, and he’s aware of Francis Ngannou’s recent message to him.

Two months after his title-fight loss to Stipe Miocic at UFC 220 in January, Ngannou (11-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) emerged from relative silence on Sunday with a message pointed at Lewis (19-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC). The heavyweight contenders have been trading shots in interviews for more than a year, and “The Predator” recently challenged his rival to back up his talk.

Naturally, Lewis fired back at Ngannou and provided a reminder that, more than anyone, it’s been he who has been pushing for the matchup. He may be on the beach in Jamaica, but “The Black Beast” made it obvious he’ll be ready to share the octagon with Ngannou soon (via Instagram):

@francisngannou it’s about time someone translated to you that I’ve been wanting this fight since last year #seeyousoonboy #iuhhyou

A post shared by Derrick Lewis (@thebeastufc) on Mar 19, 2018 at 6:03am PDT

@francisngannou it’s about time someone translated to you that I’ve been wanting this fight since last year #seeyousoonboy #iuhhyou

Lewis defeated Marcin Tybura by third-round knockout in his most recent bout at UFC Fight Night 126 in February. Lewis, who’s No. 11 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA heavyweight rankings, then called out No. 2-ranked Ngannou, among others, after victory.

Now everything is seemingly trending toward him getting his wish.

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